Football Betting
World Cup Betting
At teatime on Saturday evening, after England had spent ninety minutes vainly chasing a talented Brazilian XI around the Doha pitch, it would be fair to say we all got a bit of a reality check about Rooney and Co’s World Cup chances. With the tournament just seven months away, Fabio Capello still has work to do as on the evidence of Saturday’s display, England don’t look much like World Cup finalists to me.
England are clearly a better side than they were when the Italian took the job. Saying that, the qualifying group for South Africa couldn’t have been much more straightforward and you’d have backed even Steve McLaren to get England through a group where the Ukraine were their closest rivals.
However, whilst England might have sailed through qualifying, friendly results against top sides have been disappointing. A good 2-1 win in Berlin and a 2-2 draw with Holland in Amsterdam aside, performances against the world’s best have been poor. Up against quality sides England have struggled, going down 1-0 to France, 2-0 to Spain and 1-0 to Brazil and, more alarmingly, being comprehensively outplayed on all three occasions.
Whilst the Italian might have actually worked out a way to incorporate Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard in the same team, England look far from blessed with talent in other areas. Capello has a real goalkeeping headache as neither Robert Green nor Ben Foster has established themselves at international level and with David James old enough to be Foster’s dad there is no clear first choice stopper.
Considering Spain have the luxury of calling on the likes of Fernando Torres, David Villa and Dani Guiza, England also look surprisingly lightweight up front. Other than Wayne Rooney, the Three Lions really don’t have a top class forward and with Plan B’s likely to include Peter Crouch, Emile Heskey and Jermain Defoe, it hardly fills you with great confidence. Michael Owen is 11/4 to make the squad and if I were Capello I’d take a chance on the experienced frontman to be used as an impact substitute when chasing a game.
One of the most startling conclusions of the defeat to Brazil was how one-dimensional and unimaginative England were in the attacking third. There didn’t seem to be anyone capable of a flash of skill to unpick a strong defence and that is an area where England will have to improve. The return of Joe Cole might help (although quite where Capello will accommodate Cole in his system I am not sure) and it is also why the lack of a foil for Rooney’s talent is so problematic. Cole is a tempting 4/6 shot to make Capello’s squad.
So, with all these headaches facing Capello, how are England the 6/1 third favourites for the World Cup? The Three Lions are rated as more likely to win the tournament than Argentina, Germany, Holland, Italy and France. Is that really as likely as the bookies would have you believe?
Well, look at the team Capello can select. Terry, Ferdinand, Cole, Gerrard, Lampard, Rooney - all of whom would get into most international sides in the world. Add to that the experience of Gareth Barry, Wes Brown, Glen Johnson, Joe Cole, David Beckham, Owen Hargreaves and Michael Carrick and you have a very strong squad. You then have exciting youthful talent of the likes of James Milner, Theo Walcott, Ashley Young and Aaron Lennon and so, on paper, England look pretty formidable.
Another factor in England’s favour is that they don’t have the problem of the climate. At successive international tournaments played either in searing heat or humidity England have wilted in the conditions but a South African June is going to be much more like an English autumn than a Brazilian summer. Whilst that won’t necessarily be an advantage to England they certainly won’t be a disadvantage as they so often are in exotic, humid climates.
England sit seventh in the FIFA world rankings which, if that were to translate to World Cup performance, would see them go out in the quarter finals. Bearing in mind that they went out at that stage in both 2006 and 2002, it could be argued that England are performing exactly to their ‘seeding’ in the World Cup. Considering the footballing lessons Capello’s men have been taught by Spain and Brazil in recent months I think that only a significant improvement in form (or a fortunate draw) will see England progress beyond the quarter final stage for the first time since 1990.
Football Betting - World Cup Betting
